Winter 23/24

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, gsmt47471015 said:

we much prefer the personal touch and tend to leave mobiles and tablets locked in the safe. Also the lack of seating areas ,and quiet spaces is a little concerning as a bit of peace is something we both look forward to

You can leave your tablets and phones in the safe - no need to use them if you don't want to.

The problem of lack of seating in the main piazza is common I think on many of the bigger ships, especially in poor weather - people seem to take root, with books, cards, knitting etc! There are quiet places elsewhere on most ships, if you know where to look. 

[tring]

46 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

 

I’m interested in the absence of speakers being ‘because of covid’. Did they have theatre shows? If so, surely there’s no reason why they couldn’t have had speakers as well? This ‘because of covid’ line seems to be being used by countless organisations (not just cruise lines) nowadays as an excuse for poor service or cost cutting!

 

We assumed the lack of speakers was a Princess thing, but for covid to be used as an excuse was certainly not valid, in fact some interesting talks could have taken some of the crowds of people midship into other areas to space things out.  Indeed the theatre was very full with no spacing.  We did go to Rock Opera, which was excellent (a one off) and dropped in to see a comedian as at a lost end but which was not our thing at all. We were told there were even people standing at the first oerformance of Rock Opera.  There was no social distancing on the ship that we saw at all and many areas were very crowded, even a dancefloor which got very full indeed, my and was another reason why we did not use that area later in the cruise when it became very busy and crowded.

 

Edited November 28, 2021 by tring

[Roger88]

On 11/25/2021 at 8:55 PM, majortom10 said:

15% is a service charge for the serving of drinks etc. which many cruise lines charge and also a lot of restaurants, hotels so cannot really class it as for nothing. It is a matter of opinion on wow factor and what you look for on a cruise but in my experience of nearly 50 cruises with varying lines the whole cruise experience is better than many but by no means the best and is certainly not the most expensive but again IMO better than Princess/P&O.

If you some up all of your checks by the end of the cruise and multiply it by 15%, maan, the numbers you get will surprise you =D These service charges are insane.. and I am not even speaking of regular tips you leave from time to time which also add up 

[Gettingwarmer]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

I’m interested in the absence of speakers being ‘because of covid’. Did they have theatre shows? If so, surely there’s no reason why they couldn’t have had speakers as well? This ‘because of covid’ line seems to be being used by countless organisations (not just cruise lines) nowadays as an excuse for poor service or cost cutting!

You are right and this is my take on the matter, not official. Speakers are better on P&O. We never go to shows on either line and prefer listening to musicians in the bars etc. During the day we found quiet spots in Vines to sit and look out the windows. However we spend a lot of time in our balcony cabin. although you coul use the TV we still used our phones to order drinks. We don't tip extra as it is included in the cost and they were always so quick away there would never be a chance.    

[majortom10]

2 hours ago, Roger88 said:

If you some up all of your checks by the end of the cruise and multiply it by 15%, maan, the numbers you get will surprise you =D These service charges are insane.. and I am not even speaking of regular tips you leave from time to time which also add up 

Nobody is forcing you to leave anything more than the gratuities/tips already added to your Onboard Account or included in you fare as on P&O so you cannot complain if you do  about the cost.

[wowzz]

2 hours ago, Gettingwarmer said:

You are right and this is my take on the matter, not official. Speakers are better on P&O. We never go to shows on either line and prefer listening to musicians in the bars etc. During the day we found quiet spots in Vines to sit and look out the windows. However we spend a lot of time in our balcony cabin. although you coul use the TV we still used our phones to order drinks. We don't tip extra as it is included in the cost and they were always so quick away there would never be a chance.    

Speakers have never been a Princess strong point,  so their  absence on our cruise was not a surprise. However,  I was disappointed with the lack of "proper" production shows - certainly very poor compared to previous Princess cruises we have been on.   

[Britboys]

20 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

How long will that heavily discounted price last though wowzz?

Purely my own thoughts but I suspect that Carnival are trying to provide UK pax who are 'falling out of love' with the direction P&O are taking with an alternative not as formal - or expensive - as Cunard. They will keep offering the great value 'all-inclusive' add-on all the time it continues to attract new British pax.

[wowzz]

18 minutes ago, Britboys said:

Purely my own thoughts but I suspect that Carnival are trying to provide UK pax who are 'falling out of love' with the direction P&O are taking with an alternative not as formal - or expensive - as Cunard. They will keep offering the great value 'all-inclusive' add-on all the time it continues to attract new British pax.

But the same deal is offered on all Princess cruises, so it is not aimed purely at the British market.

If anything,  I would say it is aimed Celebrity, who have now basically moved to an all inclusive pricing model.

[Britboys]

14 minutes ago, wowzz said:

But the same deal is offered on all Princess cruises, so it is not aimed purely at the British market.

If anything,  I would say it is aimed Celebrity, who have now basically moved to an all inclusive pricing model.

Maybe but I suspect in the UK, they are more likely to steal custom from P&O than Celebrity...

[wowzz]

11 minutes ago, Britboys said:

Maybe but I suspect in the UK, they are more likely to steal custom from P&O than Celebrity...

True - I was just pointing out that Princess Plus is a worldwide promotion, not just one for the UK market.

[terrierjohn]

1 hour ago, Britboys said:

Purely my own thoughts but I suspect that Carnival are trying to provide UK pax who are 'falling out of love' with the direction P&O are taking with an alternative not as formal - or expensive - as Cunard. They will keep offering the great value 'all-inclusive' add-on all the time it continues to attract new British pax.

You suggest Carnival has a far more generous nature than I would.

[Britboys]

2 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

You suggest Carnival has a far more generous nature than I would.

I don't think Carnival are generous at all. I was looking at it as more a commercial decision, trying to lose as few pax as possible when P&O is repositioning in the market.

[tring]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

But the same deal is offered on all Princess cruises, so it is not aimed purely at the British market.

If anything,  I would say it is aimed Celebrity, who have now basically moved to an all inclusive pricing model.

 

I do not know what Princess are offering now or the complete history of the Princess package which we purchased, but I know there was a stage during this past year when the package was available to customers within the UK, but was not available in the US.  I was under the impression that included cruises from the UK which were purchased in the US, which would mean US pax on our cruise could likely not buy that package, If I understood that correctly.  Did seem strange, but then their T&C's are different of course.

[majortom10]

33 minutes ago, tring said:

 

I do not know what Princess are offering now or the complete history of the Princess package which we purchased, but I know there was a stage during this past year when the package was available to customers within the UK, but was not available in the US.  I was under the impression that included cruises from the UK which were purchased in the US, which would mean US pax on our cruise could likely not buy that package, If I understood that correctly.  Did seem strange, but then their T&C's are different of course.

Initially the Princess Plus package was only available to Princess cruises sailing from the UK it has since spread fleet wide for everyone.